Accounting

Accounting Major

The accounting track includes the basic business core plus advanced courses in cost accounting, tax accounting, and auditing. Did you know that you can earn your accounting degree in four years (not five), graduate with the required 150 hours to sit for the CPA exam, and most likely have two paid internships during that four-year period? We have designed a four-year plan that can deliver a chance for you to be working in the financial services industry without the need to stay in college for a fifth year. This four year track isn’t easy, but with high expectations comes high support from your accounting faculty.

The Franklin College Difference

Do you value real-world experience in your teachers? The accounting faculty has over 25 years of real-world work experience coupled with over 20 years of teaching experience. Our experiences include Big 4, local CPA firm, Fortune 500 company, and a local private business with earned titles like: Audit Senior, Controller, Tax Senior, and Supervisor of Cost Accounting. Franklin College professors teach more than just facts and theories. They believe that professional success comes from four factors emphasized in all of the Economics, Business and Accounting (EBA) courses:

Content – You have to have a solid understanding in the fundamentals of all EBA subjects, regardless of what your job is. The era of very narrow specialization is over.

Process – The world of EBA changes rapidly. You must learn to think like an economist, businessperson and accountant. Mastering this will allow you to adapt to any changes that occur in your profession. You will have to develop a passion for lifelong learning if you want to succeed in the long run.

Attitude – You will have ample opportunity in our classes to develop the professionalism and work ethic that will help position you for the job you want, and lead you to future success.

Ethics – Content, process and attitude are diminished without a firm grounding in ethical principles. Ben Franklin called them virtues – humility, sincerity and justice are a few. These ethical principles are an integral part of all EBA classes at Franklin College.

Accounting Track Highlights

Franklin’s accounting major is built upon a strong liberal arts foundation. This enables our graduates to adjust professionally to changes in business and society in ways that narrowly trained technicians cannot. Our courses emphasize:

Problem-solving skills

Data-analysis skills

Communication skills: Written and oral

Teamwork skills

Confronting current and future ethical issues

Case studies: Allowing students to practice making the same decisions they will be making throughout their careers

Fundamentals of each discipline as the foundation upon which to build a career

Pursuit of lifelong learning

Demonstrated Success

Each year since 1994, FC seniors have taken the Major Field Achievement Test, covering all their knowledge in economics, business, and accounting. In all but one of those years, our seniors have scored at or above the top 10% nationwide, including several years in the top 1% nationwide of all colleges taking the exam.

Hands-on Experience

Many of our upper-level classes are small and emphasize hands-on learning in the form of projects prepared for and presented to clients. You will learn to work as part of a team to produce a quality work product. When you graduate, you can use these projects to provide prospective employers with evidence of your skills. Winter term affords you a tremendous opportunity to begin getting the hands-on experience that will enhance your education.

Combining Majors

As the accounting profession expands to include more emphasis on consulting and financial services, your Franklin College accounting education will allow you to fit perfectly into this new role. While all accounting majors must take some work in finance, computing, and economics, we actively encourage students to combine accounting with a second major or minor in those areas, or in other areas of interest.

Other Valuable Services

Franklin College also has valuable support services that can help students develop the all-important networking, interviewing, and interpersonal skills they need to land and keep a job. Franklin’s Career Services office sponsors job fairs, offers mock interviews and resume workshops, and can offer advice on career choice. Additionally, the Professional Development Program (PDP) and the Business and Accounting Clubs frequently bring executives to campus and allow students to develop the sophistication and poise that will help advance their careers.

Student Experiences

“The experience I gained from my full-time accounting internship was nothing short of rewarding. The professors were very proactive in making sure that I was able to take advantage of every opportunity available to me. They are genuinely interested in my success as a person, and that is not something you can find every day.”
– Allison Bayley | Class of 2014

“A lot of students get asked what their favorite course was during college, and they usually say something unrelated to their major. All of my accounting courses were definitely my favorites during my college years. I really got to know the professors and my classmates, and by the time graduation rolled around, I knew I could count on any of them for the rest of my life.”
– Kristy Meyer | Class of 2013

Outcomes and Placements

The job placement rate for EBA graduates is approximately 95 percent. While almost all our graduates choose full-time employment in their chosen field, some opt for graduate school or law school. Previous graduates have been hired and, in some instances, have risen to partner status, at firms such as:

BKD, CPAs

DOZ , CPAs

Somerset, CPAs

Veros Partners, CPAs

Deloitte, CPAs

Cummins Inc.

Simon Property Group

Celadon Trucking

Demonstrated Success

Each year since 1994, Franklin College seniors have taken the Major Field Achievement Test, covering all their knowledge in economics, business and accounting. In almost all of those years, the students have scored at or above the top 10 percent nationwide, including several years in the top 1 percent nationwide of all colleges taking the exam.

Internships

Professional experience is a key factor in the development of successful executives; therefore, we require one internship of all EBA majors and recommend the completion of two. Internships usually take place during Winter Term, but summer internships are often available to students who desire a longer work experience. Our four-year 150 hour accounting plan can place you in a full-time internship during the spring of your junior or senior year. The exceptional aspect of our accounting internships is that you can earn up to 16 hours in the spring while being paid a competitive wage.